Its Immaterial SRS: BK1 Act2 The Wind's Shape
by Shabonna
Summary: This is the Table Game back story of one autistic Zeison Sha who gets overwhelmed by visions and input and decides to try to use this to change the universe. Set in an alternate universe in which DOOKU won. The how and where will be revealed in Ripples in the Wake (book 2) and be brought through the first war with Facing Down Sith. TYVM Thomas Benjamin DeMayo
1. Chapter 1

_**The Winds Shape**_

 _ **Chapter 11 : Legends**_

 _I own not those situations I borrow from Disney Properties, Lucas, Mechalich or Thomas Benjamin DeMayo. This is a dramatization from my mind on a character created from the meld of table gaming and so on. Special thanks to ideas Drew Karpyshyn and Tim Lebbon fermented. Special thanks to Morihei Ushiba who formed Petre with his wisdom. Like any mind construct this is an exercise and my own work building on other ideas from the past._

 _This is a Zeison Sha story, set in what is known as the Star Wars EU._

 **Near Smuggler's Run Port**

 **Commercial transport**

 **3.4 BBA**

Aboard a standard tramp freighter kitted to do legal, illegal and human cargo, an old blue caste Maskri named Rene looked beside her at the meditating ancient man seated beside her and his heavily disguised blond young friend beside him.

"Tell me again old friend what has happened in the half century since I knew my mentor best?"

"Did work, taught a little, finally found my Asawa Ko, had a child at an advanced age for us both in some "midichlorean wave" as she called it and … taught the child best I could."

"Uh huh, well we need to keep a low profile, Jasrol Mintran has spies everywhere." Rene whispered before looking around. "Is it me or is this load of people mostly Desga? apart from the sterling crew and those five Zygerrian clerks." She added as one of the flight attendants, a purple haired pink skinned Zeltron oozing with sexuality stopped by the boy admiring his rough and ready good looks.

"You know, I can give you a tour of the cockpit." She said wanting a closer inspection of the boy.

"Later, I need to finish this drawing lesson first." As he was working on learning some design and blueprint creation on a tablet.

"All school and no play makes Tommy a dull boy." She hinted.

"Well it will allow me to indulge in finer things later." He replied smoothly from behind his bandana and goggles.

Petre had never felt so proud of him before in his life for even he had sensed the pheromones the young woman gave off. He leaned in with a smile to whisper something and the smile disappeared when he saw just what was being drawn on a datapad.

"You are sure?" he asked.

Jahn merely flipped the pad to Rene and flipped up his staff to begin his own walk to the cockpit.

Rene looked at a quick sketch of the Zygerrians standing up, one going to the cockpit weapons drawn.

He knocked on the door before entering and a purple Twilek female turned to him with a clipboard over her hand.

"Sorry to bother you, I thought pilot Shay invited me up here pilot Kae'Lin."

"Oh, you are the lad she picked." Kae'Lin smiled

"I would not say that, and your plans have gone as awry as the Zygerrians on this boat, no one is getting slaves today, or keeping them." he shook his head "Slavery is just not right and this Sha sees no need for more than one to die." He nodded to the hand under the blaster "Keep it handy if I fail." He turned and closed the door to the cockpit.

"Three, two, one…" he counted out loud before swiftly opened the door jamming the would be hijacker's hand before his staff lit up and lashed out catching the man in his breastplate caving in his whole chest and flinging him back limp to the cargo bay door, alive but barely. Jahn stepped out whipping knives with his left hand 1,2,3 taking each of the other Zygerrians in the gun arm shoulder, causing them to drop their weapons with cries of pain. The knives, withdrew from the wounds to hover in front of each near their neck as the boy with the lit electrostave walked to them.

"While I appreciate you have a job for the Empire, snatching citizens seems to be a wretched way to live." Jahn said as Petre, arm outstretched, held the knives in the air, until a blaster fired and they dropped as did the cloak that covered Petre.

Jahn immediately looked at the woman who fired and her smile on her face. "One Jedi down, one more Jedi bounty to go…" as she took aim at the boy who gripped the staff with his left hand and slightly raised it as it changed color before a blaster bolt emerged from under his armpit catching the woman square in the forehead.

He then stepped forward, the color of the electrostaff stayed the same color as used it not unlike a magnet to pick up the fallen blasters and knives before he turned to Shay, still in a shooting crouch.

"You saved me, thanks."

"You saved us, Thank you kid." she stood up "What is your name Kid?" she sauntered over to a man and casually pointed a gun at him.

"L'kido." He said flatly giving an eye motion to Rene before turning his gaze on the man.

"L'kido does not like slavery and since you only started sweating when I turned my gun on you, I think you may have had a touch to do with those slavers being onboard."

"Then he might have also sold the cargo to the Zygerrians." Jahn said with a smile as he began dropping blaster into a bag, wiping knives on a cloth before stuffing them back up his sleeve. "Your shipper might be upset, is that Xerweg's mark on some of the crates back there?" Jahn said knowingly as his mirror to the Hutt was in the cargo bay having placed it there himself.

"Boss, tch tch tch, I know you know better than that. What are you going to do to give yourself a one hour head start?" Shay said seductively.

"He could remove his pilot's slave explosives and" he paused "refund all our fees for passage. Then we make take the Zygerrians SLOWLY to their competitor, in chains."

"Sounds like a living deal boss, you can even have your boat to drive away to a new life if you can find one." Shay said with a smile. "It's a chance.."

"I guess it beats being sarlacc food." the Boss said, which brought a smile and finally regular breathing to the entire cabin.

"Excellent, me first then Captain Kae, then loadmaster Ryan, NOW. And we all pledge to give you an hour once the cargo is off you can leave. Just transmit that your mother is sick and you have to leave AGAIN."


	2. Chapter 2

_**The Winds Shape**_

 _ **Chapter 12: Plotting a Course**_

 _I own not those situations I borrow from Disney Properties, Lucas, Mechalich or Thomas Benjamin DeMayo. This is a dramatization from my mind on a character created from the meld of table gaming and so on. Special thanks to ideas Drew Karpyshyn and Tim Lebbon fermented. Special thanks to Morihei Ushiba who formed Petre with his wisdom. Like any mind construct this is an exercise and my own work building on other ideas from the past._

 _This is a Zeison Sha story, set in what is known as the Star Wars EU._

 **Skip 2 Smuggler's Run**

 **3.4 BBA**

Jahn and Rena stood watching everyone get off, get gear and the cargo was offloaded before the "Boss" took off again as the cargo began its journey to Xerweg's warehouses. Jahn looked around noting the Hutt's security before he meandered his way through the cargo terminal carrying his mirrors. Then he abruptly stopped, turned and looked at a ship then at the train of people behind him.

"I almost expect Rena," he began, "but you other three?"

"Hey! we are good crew! You need us, if for no other reason than a young buck like you needs guidance."

"Besides…. Looks like we are in luck." Pointed Rena "That crew is leaving "the Rahisi" for whatever reason." And they both got a glimpse of an orange headed woman with thick glasses and a Kyuzo bodyguard, gun ready, yelling at her old crew as they left, a man tossing gear bags after them.

"An I no want to see you ar yar stuff agin!" Rena recognized the owner and looked at Jahn who showed no real emotion just an entirely subtle smile since his bandana was undone. "Good sabbacc face" she thought as Jahn stepped toward the owner of the ship carrying his gear.

"An what might you be wanting yung mon?" She asked adjusting her googles to look him in the eye.

"I was hoping for an apprenticeship job, I need to learn more about being a spacer, I have completed an apprenticeship as a medic."

"Mite bit yung ta be all dat, tilt ya head, I need ta see ya eyez mon." Jahn against all instincts except his vision looked her dead in the eyes, and they both peered into the other's soul. For a long two minutes they looked until they both started a smile. "MALCOMB!" she shouted and her erstwhile engineer poked his old sweaty clone wars head out of an underhatch.

"Yes Maz?" he replied.

"Train dees boy! An get my cargo out to dat Hutt before he starts chargin me rent!" she started to turn but noticed the boy had yet to move. "Anyding else?"

"Captain, these people, they need a job too, and are a bit more capable."

"I zee, ar ya vouchin fer em?" The odd lady asked.

Jahn without hesitation "Yes ma'am, I vouch for them." He said loud enough the rest of the traffic in the port noticed before going on their way. Rene felt he was making a point to those he did not know well, herself included. Rene caught Maz's eye and winked in recognition.

"Alright, what do dey do?" she asked and before he could respond "Boy I be talkin to dem, ceptin Rene der, I know her."

Kae'Lin stepped forward "Captain, I and my compatriot are two of the best pilots in space. Kae'Lin and Shay Weaver." Jahn's head subtly moved which he continued into a step onboard and handed her a wrapped mirror.

"I have other business here as well, unwrap this with Zuvio there" he said causing a shocked expression "You may need the help when you see it."

"Help?" she asked.

"It's a Force dream in art, sensitive people sometimes get lost in them." he whispered as he walked up the ramp. Maz grabbed his arm to reply.

"Fair enough, thanks for the warning, who you gonna see?"

"Longrun's boss." He said to her intake of breath "The large painting is for him."

"Take my load and go get another from them den deliver your package." She said softly before roaring "MALCOMB BAX! TIME TO EARN DAT PAYCHECK!" she paused "Take Streehn an da kid wid you." Then she turned to Streehn "Make sure I fire da right uns." Then she waved the other four forward to continue her interviews as Jahn took his gear onboard a Kyuzo came forward directing him to a bunk room.

"You share this room with me. I am Streehn, what you be called?"

"Call me L'kido." He said with a smile "For now."

"Well we have a delivery an a pickup to manage. You said you have a delivery too?"

"Yes, it is another work of art but I will go alone to it. I estimate it will not take long."


	3. Chapter 3

_**The Winds Shape**_

 _ **Chapter 13: The Mirror**_

 _I own not those situations I borrow from Disney Properties, Lucas, Mechalich or Thomas Benjamin DeMayo. This is a dramatization from my mind on a character created from the meld of table gaming and so on. Special thanks to ideas Drew Karpyshyn and Tim Lebbon fermented. Special thanks to Morihei Ushiba who formed Petre with his wisdom. Like any mind construct this is an exercise and my own work building on other ideas from the past._

 _This is a Zeison Sha story, set in what is known as the Star Wars EU._

 **Skip 2 Smuggler's Run**

 **3.4 BBA**

Jahn took a deep cleansing breath as he strapped on two blasters and shouldered his staff, checked his Padre's diskblade was secure in his szaza pouch. He put on his darkened goggles a pair of bandanas to complete his look as he exited the craft with the art over his shoulder.

They gathered the shipment onto a pair of repulsor lifts that the boy, even with his burden handled in the bustling point with a calm confident ease as Malcomb, somewhat nervously walking checking his comlink while Streehn walked confidently providing security.

When they reached the Longrun freight dock the guards checked them over noting the weapons but not really doing anything as everyone was armed and the turret guns in the walls meant no foolishness was tolerated. Jahn took advantage of the glaze on his winter goggles to keep his eyes closed as he helped, with one hand place and set each box going out.

On the second to last one he stopped and held his head close to it, acting like he had heard something.

"Are you tracking things or is there a bomb in there?" He said before he demanded "OPEN THIS UP AND THIS ONE AS WELL!" he pointed to another.

"Boss does not let anyone open them up!"

"Really? Lets see!" He turned to the camera _"I am L'kido, the artist you wished to meet. And one of your men is smuggling his own crap in here without paying you or so I bet, for those noises are homing a LOSS for both you and the carrier."_ He said in Huttese. Then he turned to the dock workers who held their hands to their ears "I expect you are getting orders to open them now?"

The workers opened the crates and indeed 3 had active beacons and the rest had inactive ones. As the workers began arguing Jahn stepped off the repulsor lift taking it all in before making his way toward a door waving his hand at the mirror. The door opened up and the female cyborg he had painted greeted him, as he expected. She led him to the throne room through the tunnels. When they reached the throne room Jahn walked in with her as she took her place with the other three slaves he had painted at their stations monitoring the Hutt's business networks.

Upon entering Jahn stood the mirror still with its shroud on an easel that popped out from its back, kneeled and bowed.

"Such reverence from an artist is unusual." Xerweg the Hutt said as he lay on his repulsor lift "Rise artist, I have wanted to meet you for some time."

"I know." Jahn responded, "You are my most consistent patron."

"What have you brought me today and how much will it cost me?"

"I brought you a Force dream, beautifully wrought but still a captured Force dream from the mists. One if read wisely will increase profits, reduce risk, allow you to outflank your competition, avoid the traps your enemies set and overall increase your profitability and empire."

"Bold claims, You have proof?"

"Well you saw some of the interplay on your terminal so you know I have not been able to alter this." He pulled off the smock showing dated swatches to be removed. "Lets see what is under strip one." And he pulled off a section that showed the events of today concerning Xerweg up to this point.

Xerweg looked at the interplay and subtle work as it told him his house cleaning was not entirely finished. He swiftly texted a message with his comlink to a new "chief of Security" as he replayed the days' videos with that man on the other eye. Then he sighed, he knew the boy was real and so far his visions as well. "Beautiful work, how do I know you did not manipulate events up to that point?" Xerweg asked.

"You don't have anything but my word as a twelve year old, who just arrived, who has a full plate of things to learn, do and know." Jahn admitted.

"What then is keeping me from keeping you here, forever?"

"Nothing but honor and the opportunity for a good relationship." Jahn sighed "You could keep me but eventually a collar or slave detainment device would fail. You could turn me in for the meager bounty but I would smash the mirror and we will see what happens in the future." He sighed again "I am all about a mission and you are not Jabba but greater, I can help you beat him."

Xerweg pondered this for a minute before making his next move "What is your price?"

"For me to ensure the future told in this painting is accurate I need" another swatch pulled off "these four underutilized slaves to be freed. Then I can make them an offer to aid a budding organization. You profit, I profit, we all profit." Then he cleared his throat "I have a mission, there is a weapon, a large ship capable of destroying a planet in a second I need to find and remove from existence. That includes plans, machinery and so many other things beside just the stinking device. It threatens you… no all Hutts as well if you stop me from pursuing this."

"Thus you need their help is all and I pay nothing else?"

"And you get exclusive rights for now to resell my exhibition art. I have been a busy artist the last few months, over 10,000 pieces are arriving" He waved his hand flipping his security feeds to four docks "as we speak. You have already found out, my art under those four names turns a quick and serious profit. Provided you just let me work and ask nothing of me like you normally do others." Jahn sighed "Bullying an autistic artist is so unsatisfying. We usually do not care what others think. So it is with me, I have a mission, roadblocks, foes, allies, people working toward the same goal and obstacles. Too much depends on the where, help if you would could profit us both. But me, I am a shell, a mission personified."

Xerweg thought it over remembering the idea he had profited on by L'kido's previous art and indeed how he had just done him a favor finding spies in his docks. He looked at the screen that showed the man peeing himself even as the rest of the Kanata crew headed back to ship his goods. Then he considered how much the boy risked just being here.

"Tell me first what is your mission." He demanded.

"Prevent and heal Force wounds, you should really keep the terrarium I made on Ruusan last week for a clue…. Even I do not fathom it fully but I have not the space to keep it. I also made a multi-disciplinary one on Christophsis, you should really look to it for financial leverage."

Xerweg's greed got him at the mention of Muun bankers, so he waved a device and the slave collars dropped off the four slaves. "Go before I change my mind."

"Your name shall be considered among the greatest of the Hutts when we are done your eminence." Jahn bowed Yanab style and before he turned away he put the sheet on the mirror. "Sir remember, the future is fluid and intel is only as good as it is rare. So I recommend hiding and tending to it yourself." A device floated to Xerweg. "This is the repulsor and easel control as well as a shutter built into the frame."

Xerweg smiled "I look forward to your further work."

Jahn bowed but before he left he asked one more boon.

"Sir, please do two things, ban Malcomb Bax from your gambling halls and buy up his debts, for they are owned by your competition. I am delivering to you a few pieces to pay off the debt, the terrarium and Christophsis work are yours gratis. Other works in the load will sell and pay off his debts, especially if you sell them to the Black Sun people he owes."

Xerweg knew there was something fishy "Done but do not ask for more." He said summoning a few more minions.

With that Jahn bowed again and led the freed slaves out of the throne room turning down a secret passage that emptied right to Maz's ship, as a kind of reinforcement for Xerweg.

Maz looked at him upon entry to the YT1300. Standing next to her was Rene and Zuvio. "The son of Petre Allyan, the Albulyaro Komoqua, walked up to Xerweg and walked out with exactly what he needed." she looked at him straight shaking her head "What possessed you..?" she began.

"A vision of what would happen if I did not." Jahn shrugged safe behind his goggles. "I brought some people to hire to make the journey a success." He waved his hand behind him and noticed Malcomb looking him over. "I also took care of some debts that needed to go away."

"How did you get the greedy vindictive Hutt to do that?" Maz demanded.

"To answer your question Xerweg came to his own conclusion. Hutts cannot be manipulated, I gave him my head and fate but pointed out his profit. He is after all, all about business even if he believes he owns me he knows my path is very good for business. My path stops events that are extremely bad for business. And he may control illegal enterprises, but his legitimate ones pay just as well."

Maz thought about it and the Force dream Zuvio had shaken her out of "You have a long road."

"And so much you can teach me." Jahn smiled inside "Just as long as you allow me my quirk of wearing my goggles and bandana, we will be good." He slumped a bit "I used to seclude myself except to a very small few, visions come at all hours, my reactions upset people." He waved at his getup "This is my smock and veil. It protects us both. You saw that in my eyes."

"Yes I did."Maz answered.

Jahn pressed his hand to a spot dropping the cyborg female like a sack of potatoes. "Malcomb, Ash, I need you to keep her alive. Her pain" he shook his head sadly "She needs fixed, not used this time." He turned to Maz, "Your next delivery was to Folor correct?"

Maz unsurprised nodded "And you need some time there?"

"She will, one week." With that he began drawing on the cyborg woman's metal parts.

"What is that?" Ced asked.

"Directions, explanation, demands. Someone owes my family a favor on Commenor, it is past time they pay." He said without emotion.


	4. Chapter 4

_**The Winds Shape**_

 _ **Chapter 14: Raindrops Fall**_

 _I own not those situations I borrow from Disney Properties, Lucas, Mechalich or Thomas Benjamin DeMayo. This is a dramatization from my mind on a character created from the meld of table gaming and so on. Special thanks to ideas Drew Karpyshyn and Tim Lebbon fermented. Special thanks to Morihei Ushiba who formed Petre with his wisdom. Like any mind construct this is an exercise and my own work building on other ideas from the past._

 _This is a Zeison Sha story, set in what is known as the Star Wars EU._

 **Kanata Remote Base Kalat Belt**

 **Coruscant, Imperial Temple**

 **Serenno**

 **2.8 BBA**

Ced'Valo and Kae'Lin stepped back looking at their work while Maz supervised.

"Well Jahnny boy, I can honestly say, you look different." Maz said looking over his Pantoran .

"I must be able to get close, in and out, not freaking out from the proximity. That is what Ti'na designed my usual gear to do. It gives me a disconnect." Jahn commented quietly. "I need to be able to function."

"You will be at risk, Serreno is the house of Dooku's domain." Maz reiterated.

"If I am not there, we may gain another enemy that is twice as dangerous." Jahn answered "It is not a question about whether Adrianna will survive, it is a question on what will drive her in the future."

"You certainly have trained hard for this." Maz said "But are you ready?"

"I guess we will find out. Deliver the art I made to Xerweg for me please, that should finish Malcomb's debt. Then get yer tail back to Takodana, you need to reconnect with your main business venture."

Maz turned to Rene "Oversee this subsidiary for me as we discussed." Then she turned back to Jahn "You father is missed by all, but I am glad he helped set all this up."

Jahn nodded as he looked at all his mentors who looked back sternly at him, they had tried to make the boy see reason, not take unnecessary risks. His response was "then nothing positive would change." That ended that disagreement. "Find out about Shanev as well for me." He received a nod from Ced before he turned to the cyborg Shandra "I need that ranger gear you have been working on." He looked at the Togrunta "Ash, keep working on our ships. We need Puffy and the intruders ready for Shanev. Steehn, get the ranger trainees ready." Jahn took a deep breath "Even if I do not return, get Jannma off Shanev, bring her my mirror. Her being their hero be damned she needs to leave that place or…. Just follow the plan, get Ni'ko too if he is willing. Her actions there have the Empire looking in a different route and another path to domination has resolved in the mists."

"What would that be?" Ced asked as Jahn began the walk to his gear.

"Sith spawn super soldiers. They have two projects in the works right Shandra?"

"All I can add is I am glad you disabled that subset of programming lines." She responded "Losing control of one's self is…"

"Such feelings feed the dark side, thus your pain for the past decade was the blueprint. Kadiliman felt so empowered by your feelings. I was lucky Xerweg stole you though his programmers missed the hard codes inserted and had no idea you were an unwilling agent against him."

"I am grateful you could feel that." She said with a grateful look "How did you get it changed?"

"I sent a message to a contact with the source code. They fixed it when we parked you on Folor for a while, sorry for the partial deactivation. I know it nearly broke you which is why I gave your sensors an input, hopefully it made up for the torture at my hands." He finished, leaving the answer open. Shandra merely nodded in a forgiving fashion.

"How did you.."

"I have other contacts my father made. That is where I go for weeks at a time."

With that he suited up in the battle armor Shandra had crafted with Ash off his drawings before heading to the Phoenix Hawk ship they had prepared for him to use for this mission.

He boarded and looked to his side "Starkey, are you ready?" he asked a heavily modified slightly odd shaped protocol droid, one of a pair.

"Sir and the suit Shandra made for you to mimic me is here too. H8TR is modifying it and has set up the contingency mods. I am upset you had us stored and wiped to have our own programming, program us."

"One day in the future you will understand when you see the entire chessboard in all four dimensions." Jahn said before he powered the ship up and lifted off for his mission.

Ral Gorgon finished her Empire day celebration as she most liked, with the prior year's imperial comptroller slowly dying after watching her murder his family slowly and painfully. She used the power the dark side gave her to see the delicious future, her ascending to the throne.

Among the wreckage she saw she must find or make someone into a suitable apprentice, her longtime secret apprentice, her younger half-sister who was right now beloved and the paparazzo's favorite celebrity. Now, she had to make her a survivor, a hero, extremely angry and bitter. Her half-brother, the weak sniveling ass who was Adrianna's twin wished to become Count of Serrano by assassinating his sister. The fool actually sent a coded message asking permission so she chuckled, knowing the waffling she saw in her visions was him possibly changing his mind. Brother attempts to kill sister but brother saves her in the end.

She typed "approved" to his request, smiling, ready to report to the master, her Emperor that she had served for the past two decades.

Jahn stood with eight other "security personnel" having made it through the deadly gauntlet Countess Dooku and her boyfriend Leo Organa had placed before them. He made note that they had both not noticed his presence, which validated his "confusion suit's" design. No Sith spells needed to reduce or remove the way the Force flowed in him, the suit attenuated the flow like a choke. But he did make note it had significantly weakened what he was used to being able to do. He made a mental note to thank the Jensaari his father had contacted way back when for the ideas he had worked with to be made to this battle suit.

He looked at his competition, one in Mandalorian armor was a closed book while the rest had emotions and desires flowing freely.

"Your next test is … well the four who walk out of this arena, or however many do, get the job."

"We have to fight each other?" asked one applicant obviously upset with the proclamation.

"Well that and the gundark and the ackley." Adrianna stated obviously savoring the moment. Jahn kept his sabbac face under his mask on as he readied for this test. "You do have weapons you know. The doors do not open until there are only four left and the two beasts are dead."


	5. Chapter 5

_**The Winds Shape**_

 _ **Chapter 15 : Job Application**_

 _I own not those situations I borrow from Disney Properties, Lucas, Mechalich or Thomas Benjamin DeMayo. This is a dramatization from my mind on a character created from the meld of table gaming and so on. Special thanks to ideas Drew Karpyshyn and Tim Lebbon fermented. Special thanks to Morihei Ushiba who formed Petre with his wisdom. Like any mind construct this is an exercise and my own work building on other ideas from the past._

 _This is a Zeison Sha story, set in what is known as the Star Wars EU._

 **Serenno**

 **2.8 BBA**

"But first, we will take your names, for the memorials." Leo Organa said solemnly, a stylized pendant showing on his chest.

"Kua Wan" announced the candidate in Mandalorian armor. "Dunc T'racin" one girl announced, the next also female said "Karolly D'ulin" said the next. "Jensen" answered the next guy, a Zabrak "Bal Emari" said another then a Trandoshan announced "Bluud". A Weequay called himself "Krusch" a woman announced herself as "Zeen" and a huge Kiffar called himself "Deathstalker" before Jahn realized it was his turn. _I wonder if he realizes that is the Sith symbol for "MINE" on the chain_ Jahn thought and remnants of fury, anger and hatred flowed from it and some items on Adrianna, probably earrings. Then he understood it was his turn to answer "Jedidiah Smoak" was his cover ID and answer in a gravely mechanically aided voice.

He noticed his hesitation had granted him the full attention of Leo Organa, the only adopted son of the Senator of Alderaan and Adrianna's frequent boyfriend on the party circuit his intel had told him. For "hard Partiers" they had surprisingly only been rumored to dabble in spice. Their appearances, both visual and through the Force, were hale, hearty and clean if opulent.

Jahn looked around the arena looking at the design which offered him little help. His gloved hand touched the soil and his senses from psychometry told him there had been thousands of deaths in the past here, most for the sport of the Dooku clan. He dropped the soil struggling with maintaining his composure.

However this suit and his gear would be his biggest advantage, especially reducing the signature he had in the Force. However it did not hamper his ability to passively listen to the Force, and so far it sold him as "nothing fancy" to his "evaluators" which were modestly trained sensitives, powerful but too noisy for having had real life lesson training like the Sha go through. That said Jahn's singularity was the kind that raised hair on the unsensitives and he was noisier naturally in the Force than either one of these two. He still sensed it try to get in and rush to fill his senses urgently….

He took cleansing breaths and casually walked toward one of the doors, the sound of the gundark on the other side did not break his calm as he took his butterfly vibroblades and attached them to his electrostaff methodically before energizing the entire weapon and his suit as the creature rushed out.

As he expected, the Mandalorian clad candidate went right after the ackley given Jahn's choice while the remaining seven began attacking each other. Jahn felt the thrill from the observation deck keenly but suppressed any reaction. He simply had no time as the gundark was quicker than he had researched.

The Mandalorian began using his rifle and jetpack to try to manipulate the ackley. Jahn merely decided to guide his gundark out and maintain its attention so others could engage it while he used his now double ended electrified spear with changing velocities, varied angles, power and precision. The gundark lunged looking to grapple and was met by controlled two stab strikes as parries then a dervish move so the other two arms closed on air while he dodged and forced it to dodge as well. Over and over this happened until all of its limbs and most of its torso were leaking blood at a large rate from the electrified vibroweapons. It roared in frustration each time it missed in this slowing battle dance as the ackley screamed in frustration as well at the expert shooting and jet dodges of the Mandalorian.

More thrills from the gallery alerted Jahn that someone had died in the battle royal among the rest of the bodyguards. As expected by Jahn, the Mandalorian gave ground to let the Ackley feed on the dead. Jahn however had pissed the gundark off enough he was not going to be redirected by non moving food so easily. Another brief flurry by the gundark gave him an avenue straight for the corpses, two wounded female fighters taking a breather, the ackley feeding, the Mandalorian and the candidate who called himself Deathstalker who was lightly wounded.

Jahn took offense to the moniker so …. After his last dodge of gundark arms he sprinted with the double spear in his right hand straight toward the Deathstalker and the body before him he was mutilating.

"This contest has been thrilling so far right?" Adrianna said fixated on the Deathstalker opening up the chest of his fallen opponent.

"Don't look now but it is about to get much more interesting." Leo pointed to the strange outlander his eyes had not left with the electrified suit hustling toward her "favorite".

The Deathstalker looked up when he heard the proximity of the gundark roaring closer even as he had flexed his hand on the warm, still, heart of the fallen before him. The wiry outlander was charging him holding his spear as a lance. Deathstalker dropped the heart and drew to begin to point his pistol at the charging foe. Just as he brought it to bear the outlander threw from his left hand what looked like an expanding mudball without breaking stride. It enveloped his weapon just as he fired it, blowing off his right hand.

Deathstalker also took three blaster bolts in the back as he fell, and armor or not the warrior began to fall screaming from the pain as the "outlander" dashed by deftly snatching the pin of his last grenade with the tip of his bobbing spear, almost seemingly by accident. Deathstalker mouthed thanks and thought "I have failed you Alon" as he fell over backwards the gundark who grabbed him, pulling him to the mouth for the killing blow. The explosion caught him and the gundark mortally wounding it.

Adrianna squealed in appreciation while Leo wondered at the outlander and Mandalorian. The outlander had run nearly the length of the arena, threw a jar that shattered when its contents were exposed to air, misfiring a blaster. And not satisfied with that had picked a 2 centimeter ring on a foe's body to flip off the only thing that would kill the gundark in one shot left on the field.

That is good, and while he identified the two women left as Mystral Shadowguards, this outlander must be Jedi, Sith or untrained. The other was definitely Mandalor.

Then 3 grenades exploded under the ackley made him reconsider the last thought a bit as the two remaining wounded candidates combined forces with the Mandalorian to wound the crustacean on its weakly defended underbelly critically. It landed on its back and the outlander parried his way past the flailing legs to deliver a spinning coup de grace decapitating the beast.

Jedi soresu, he thought, though the choice of double bladed spear was distinctly Zabrak with a flair of Sun Guard thrown in to boot, hard to tell what race he was with the way this outlander selected his nondescript grey flowing garb. He almost looked like he could fly if he wanted to.

"Excellent!" Shouted Adrianna "We have our four bodyguards now!" she clapped in appreciation.

The four aspirants looked at each other, the Mandalorian shrugged and they lined up. Jahn was at one end and the Mandalorian as the two females who had banded together stood in the middle.

"You have done extremely well." Adrianna announced savoring the destruction and blood flowing before her. "Time for a shower, to take your bioscans, to make you ID's."


	6. Chapter 6

_**The Winds Shape**_

 _ **Chapter 16 : The Celebrities**_

 _I own not those situations I borrow from Disney Properties, Lucas, Mechalich or Thomas Benjamin DeMayo. This is a dramatization from my mind on a character created from the meld of table gaming and so on. Special thanks to ideas Drew Karpyshyn and Tim Lebbon fermented. Special thanks to Morihei Ushiba who formed Petre with his wisdom. Like any mind construct this is an exercise and my own work building on other ideas from the past._

 _This is a Zeison Sha story, set in what is known as the Star Wars EU._

 **Serenno**

 **2.8 BBA**

"I'd prefer not." Kua Wan said "I know I will serve for you honorably as long as you pay but when the job is over, I do not want a mountain of evidence left behind."

"Granted!" shouted a slightly irritated Adrianna, tossing her blond locks and activating a door "Then go shower up so Leo and I can choose our bodyguards."

"Can we not choose who we serve?" Jahn voiced gravely.

"Are you paying?" Adrianna asked angrily.

"No, but I would work cheaper." Jahn said casually.

"Then accept what we choose." She barked as the Mystrals hissed "fool" to him.

Jahn shrugged and led the way toward the open door as Leo noticed he had not turned off his suit yet as he approached the darkened corridor exit. He noticed the lad shrugged the "pouch" he had pulled his jar from to his left hip and before he reached he tossed four small items that exploded in the hall as he blocked others with his spear.

Adrianna snarled as the hall cameras went dark but when she put it on replay it seems three little jars exploded on each surface coating them with a foaming glue before they lost camera coverage and a bang sounded as if another blaster fouling had occurred, probably the turret weapon in there.

The two looked up from the monitor as Kua Wan turned to them.

"Thanks to the rimmer, we obviously have avoided your gun trap." He said pointing at the glued turret gun parts littering the hall.

"I need Ambria barnacles, Felucia dycillin and Onderon beast oil to mix up some more as I am down now 25% of the stuff." Jahn called in a cheerful gravelly voice. The Mystrals looked at him with respect and Kua Wan just shook his head.

"What?" Jahn said in his airy whisper "I am a guy who went on many expeditions gathering stuff, you work with xenochemists, that becomes part of your skill set."

"Explosives work better." Kua Wan said.

"Explosives!" they heard Jahn's airy whisper and chuckle.

Adrianna Dooku was about to let her fury go, at loosing her "favorite", of being challenged by her new bodyguards….

Leo was pleased as punch though and laid a calming hand on her "Don't" he whispered before speaking like a senator "I see you are resourceful, serious and will provide protection to the point of overruling us when we make a situation untenable. You have" he began to recount "been tested on piloting, trap and hazard avoidance, poison recognition, speeders and finally combat and dedication." He turned to Adrianna looking her in the eye "You'll do." With that Jahn shut down his staff and thus his suit.

"Where did you get that suit?" Karolly D'ulin asked before Jahn chuckled.

"Its an old updated Echani design we tripped across in some data." He said in his airy whisper.

"What is with your voice?" Karolly asked.

"Birth defect." Jahn said flatly activating the vibration node on his neck "I need the money for the operation. Xenochemist security just does not pay well." He finished in his whisper ending the discussion as they walked down the glued hall.

"You were calm against the gundark." Karolly added.

"Animals are predictable, Black Sun? not so much." He hinted using the vibro module so Leo could hear him finishing filling out all the checkmarks on his resume for the mercenary as they entered.

Leo cleared his throat as he stood, Adrianna waited, still fuming a bit. He began taking the information in his surveillance equipment had picked up.

His fingers flew across the datapad he held looking up "Jedidiah Smoak" finding a Pantoran male, 17 years of age, right size, right backstory as he worked for Kelen Biolabs in the past on "away teams" since he was 8 with his parents. He was autistic so he tended to keep "covered" as people misinterpreted his expressions. He first started work being a simple gofer, working his way into team security and lab assistant when his parents were killed on Vendaxa. No pictures, but even all the locations worked he mentioned checked out albeit it was not an exhaustive list. Biotech people rarely gave out all the information of where they went as that was worth money. Skills seemed to include him being a medic, chemist (but of course working with scientists), a bit of a creative gadget guy, serviceable pilot and a record of 0 deaths to his charges.

The two Mystrals had a long and distinguished careers over the last 10 years. They were infiltration and piloting experts. Unlike in the arena, he wanted them split so they could not gang up on either of them and sent that message to Adrianna's datapad.

Kua Wan, a simple bounty hunter with a few kills on his resume, home world and other details unknown.

"So… choose one guy and one girl, I do not want the Mystrals together." Leo texted with the complete resumes of all their finalists.

"I'll take the asshole so I can watch him die." She texted back.

"Which one is that?" Leo had fun.

"The one with the glowing personality."

"Ok before we let you shower and gather your gear is there anything else we should know?"

"I have two droids." Jahn volunteered "Specially recycled from Akiva from JAK industries. They are kitted with extra sensors and both have advanced hyperdrive calculation software starship piloting as well as bio scanners, minor medical capabilities and have minor weaponry."

"Kidding right? And you cannot afford a voice box?" Karolly asked sarcastically.

"Ever sang for food? Better bio sensors make finding the correct and safe flora possible as well as avenues of escape during ackley migrations when personal data might be low. And they come with fully integrated comlinks" he touched his ear coverings "and slicer capability." He looked at Adrianna with a grin and tapped his ear phone before adding "They were my mom's."

"Fair enough, well Jedidiah, will you consider splitting the droids?"

"Yes," he answered immediately "it will give you more flexibility, I recommend Star, my protocol model for yourself Sir."

"Thank you, you do not mind if we sweep their memories for malware?"

"I would recommend that regardless of where they came from, sweep my ship as well." Jahn responded.

"Well clean up and get ready, you and Karolly have "Dooku Duty", Kua, Dunc, you are my crew. Submit your droids to the Countessa's household here in the palace. Dismissed and see you in the morning."

Jahn went straight to his ship, gathered the droids and a trio of memory sticks then slept well that night, for both hours, after he lit 13 candles for those who died in the tests.


	7. Chapter 7

_**The Winds Shape**_

 _ **Chapter 17: Programming Problems**_

 _I own not those situations I borrow from Disney Properties, Lucas, Mechalich or Thomas Benjamin DeMayo. This is a dramatization from my mind on a character created from the meld of table gaming and so on. Special thanks to ideas Drew Karpyshyn and Tim Lebbon fermented. Special thanks to Morihei Ushiba who formed Petre with his wisdom. Like any mind construct this is an exercise and my own work building on other ideas from the past._

 _This is a Zeison Sha story, set in what is known as the Star Wars EU._

 **Serreno, Dooku Palace**

 **2.8 BBA**

Kua Wan's comlink went off as he slept in his armor in a room to the side of the two celebrities. Since he was a light sleeper he got up ready for anything before activating it.

"Kua." He responded.

"Partner, this is Dunc, I have a pissed Pantoran out in the hall and he wants a meeting with all of us. Bring your datapad if you have one."

When he reached the three other guards he stood at ease once he closed his door.

When the four protectors had gathered "Jedidiah" handed them data sticks and kicked a lunchbox with wheels at his feet "Just jump around and act like you are stretching for calisthenics. I have a recorded session for us as white noise." He handed them bandanas "Tie over your faces so we can talk." He started jumping jacks "I keep my programming for the droids separate so I can do a line by line after a scan, well dropkick does." Then he plugged into the two droids some datapads. "There are 191 extra routine lines and 112 fewer comment lines in my droids and on my ship! And it is "remote command language" so someone is trying to gain some sort of command over our droids!"

"And what do you want to do about it?" Dunc asked.

"You're the slicer, what would you do?"

"Baseline the code."

"How long will that take?"

"Only one hour with the sticks, twelve minutes" Jahn switched to high knee jogging in place "with dropkick because he has more bandwidth, unless you do not trust me." With that Jahn did something he ALMOST never did, he used his greatest weapon, his slaps on the knees released a pheromone to manipulate "compliance" subtly, so they would not notice. He felt he had no hope with the Mandalorean, but the two girls were another thing. Then Kua Wan surprised him.

"Go for it with dropkick."

Dunc and Karolly thought for a minute before they agreed and with a kick dropkick did its thing, giving the area a dance hall music feel as a cover. Eighteen minutes later the droids were rebooted and operational.

"Guys just for the record between us" Jahn said using cooldown stretching exercises. "We hard commented the lines out and with a cursory search the code will be as expected by the modifiers but they can not see the hardline activation dropkick suggested. They did not suspect I had hard bias coding or source to recompile in such a short time in there to catch them."

"What does that mean for us?" Dunc asked.

"Keep your eyes open, someone is trying to make us fail." Kua answered.

At an early hour, Contessa Adrianna Dooku and Leo Organa were awoken by a chime at their door and on their comlinks at what would be considered for the socialites an obscene hour.

"Your Grace, Lord, we are reporting your entire security detail is outside your door right now." Palace security said.

Lady Dooku immediately rose snapping her hand out getting her and Leo's lightsabers flying to their hands. They reached out with the Force and other than the feelings one would expect after a hard day of testing, and early morning exercise, she sensed no warnings, indeed the Force told her they were safer now, than they must have been previously.

"Should we call them in to ask them what is going on?" Leo asked in a ready stance.

"We might want to dress lover." Adrianna added as her robe flew to her.

Leo blushed and quickly dressed as she did in her best sparring gear attaching her lightsaber at her hip as Leo did the same.

"Spar or talk to our detail?" Leo offered looking around the lavishly appointed but open room layout.

"If it was because of that asshole…" Adrianna growled flipping her wrist showing off and the door swung wide open.

Outside she saw their team exercising while a droid with speakers played upbeat workout music with a dance beat. The asshole stopped as he was facing them and she imagined his smile under the cloth mask he wore.

"Care to join us?" he asked.

"Care to tell us just what you are doing?"

"The droids arrived, and could not sleep any further so, we started workouts hoping to not bother you." Dunc added.

"Is our security detail now going to be masked?"

"This bandana could be substituted with a breath mask and I have an enviro suit that matches my weaver suit." Jahn answered.

"Excuse me?" Adrianna demanded her hand slipping toward her lightsaber.

"The re-inventor was named Weaver, some what… 30 years ago? My parents and friends have made some startling changes and the latest mods were made by a hot 19 year old Zelt named Weaver, so that is how I think of the suit." Jahn shrugged as Adrianna sniffed and softened.

"So, our droids are back." Leo said breaking the rest of the tension "What can you teach us about them?"

"Other than the fact there are hideout compartments and special mods which are useful in a "hostile native environment". I do not know what report, if any was sent to you." Jahn added.

"What is useful about the two protocol droids?" Leo asked.

"Piloting, manners routines, slicing, better sensors and hideaway capabilities are not enough?" he shrugged "They have some combat protocols, better servo synchro reactions and extra balancers. Like I said, they work as a "get out of trouble key" in hostile environs."

Then Adrianna did something, a hair flip revealing an earing that caused a black dot in his vision, rushing to consume him and he activated the "vision protocol" having the droids record the conversation as he locked his body in place.

 _An assassination attempt, foiled by the protection crew shows imperial and Serreno ties. Alon…_

 _We are going to leave for Coruscant for some answers, ladies you pilot us off planet and activate the coordinates given…_

 _The coordinates are corrupted, the yacht flies into an asteroid field just off the hyperlane. But they were programmed by his droids….remotely controlled…_

 _All pointing to a push over the edge of the dark side…._

 _And she is wearing Sith earrings, once worn by Sorzus Syn, and still visible in her holocron visage he had studied at the Jedi temple of Ossus_

 _Fake people, use the worms in cadavers and canine mammals… blow the budget….buy drones… quick program link with dropkick…. Moving jewels…. Sha soresu technique drones intercepting incoming fire… the escape hatch over the service door… steam... the droids flying her yacht… the steam vent… service tunnel to the phoenix hawk over another …Kua Wan comfortable leading in tunnels…into the phoenix hawk… combat… flying… Commenor bound…. The tranquilizer darts on the Mystrals…_

Jahn came back to hissenses after seeing the multi layered attack and the droids picked up on the cues. "We have a formation run in one hour after breakfast" was the digested version, and we are going to the breakfast now. With that he fully returned to the present.

"You ok Jedidiah?" Leo asked.

"If we are going jogging, lose the earrings and pendants for now, adds an extra flashy thing for someone to shoot at." Jahn said surprising the entire group. Adrianna, still under the effect of the pheromone control that one Sorzus Syn had developed taking the lesson of his and her own ancestor Lanoree Brock, took off her favorite earrings for the first time in years.


	8. Chapter 8

_**The Winds Shape**_

 _ **Chapter 18: Foiled Attack**_

 _I own not those situations I borrow from Disney Properties, Lucas, Mechalich or Thomas Benjamin DeMayo. This is a dramatization from my mind on a character created from the meld of table gaming and so on. Special thanks to ideas Drew Karpyshyn and Tim Lebbon fermented. Special thanks to Morihei Ushiba who formed Petre with his wisdom. Like any mind construct this is an exercise and my own work building on other ideas from the past._

 _This is a Zeison Sha story, set in what is known as the Star Wars EU._

 **Serreno Bellasavian Sea Coast**

 **Corruscant**

 **2.8 BBA**

Jahn while walking to breakfast used the ear interface and his mechu derro to activate the special coms protocol to get his droids getting drones, canines and having the cadavers from last night in position as well as the worms he had brought so six of them "wormed" so humanoid heat signatures would be present on a thorough scan. He sketched the dream and his resolution to the problem on a napkin on his lap, capturing the vision in the mists. By the time everything would be forensically checked, the whole incident would be over.

He ate a light meal eschewing the savory high grease or heavily seasoned offerings instead going for high protein, high carb low bulk foods. In what was essentially a "family banquet hall" with servants, his choices were noticed….

"Is there something wrong with the breakfast offerings Jedidiah?" Adrianna was back in snarky mode asked as they sat in the opulent semi formal dining hall. Jahn, still wearing his goggles much like Kua Wan only had a "food slot" open, Jahn considered the withdrawals she must be suffering making her cranky after she removed artifacts from her person infused with the ancient dark side energies of the twisted Sorzus Syn. After all the woman had essentially created the theology of the order of the Sith. He sighed, remembering Tython, Ashla and Boga and his father's presence that led him to the Breath of Life project there meeting with Sn'Jin Shan. He shook himself to re-enter the present and the question facing him.

"Its not wild fungus, fish, nuts and berries?" Jahn said shrugging causing Leo to burst out laughing showering them with caf.

"I guess good food means something different when the nearest 20 star chef with exotic spices is parsec upon parsecs away!" roared Leo slapping the table in mirth.

"I do like fish and seeds, wonderful in a wrap, deep fried in tuber oil with mushrooms and shoots." Jahn admitted letting his homeland's fare show through thinking "by the time they figure that one out, I will be long gone and the Yanabar reference will still be a head scratcher." He tried to interpret the body language of the group now laughing about him and merely shrugged as he pocketed the incriminating cloth napkin for later.

The rest of the meal had most everyone, well except for him and Kua who was deflecting all conversation as "unprofitable", unless someone shared a secret with him, get to know each other. Jahn had plans in motion which needed precise timing.

The run and route would take them along the mid cliff path where they would be vulnerable from the beach and above. The pair because of its "undulation" refused to choose a different route, even after all four vigorously defended their objection.

Kua Wan took point as Jahn took the rear and the two Mystrals running alongside the celebrities as seaside threat shields as the first leg was selfie and paparazzo filled. The "power couple", beloved by the people hid their weapons (blasters and lightsabers) well before Serreno security forces stopped the further annoyances.

"Just a note for the future, you need to better control your public appearances." Kua Wan began "Remember that is where the first four assassination attempts have come from."

"We belong to the people and plan on ruling with the love and kindness to share." Adrianna responded causing Jahn's eyes to do a double take. Last night? Really? She got OFF on the carnage! Jahn had never before seen people enjoying misery and massacre until then.

The actual run was soothing. The path was well tended, the view was spectacular, the smells wonderful and sounds mesmerizing.

Leo running beside Dunc sensed the trap with a sudden spike of warning in the Force as they were in the apex of the "bay curve". Adrianna, similarly attuned responded at the same time drawing their lightsabers as they then heard a sound like a thousand hungry insects as propeller powered drones hovered into layers between them and the snipers as Kua Wan fired his rocket pack to quickly engage them.

"Where did these come from?" Leo yelled.

" _No time initiates! Rise!"_ Leo heard in the Force as two grapple gun shots fired and a strange but calm and soothing presence was felt swirling around them.

The two adepts reached the top of the cliff using the Force aided jump to begin the sprint toward the snipers when he saw a drone dive bomb the assault team and the telltale sight and reaction of Jedidiah's foam hit the snipers. Then they saw a shape swoop down like a humanoid glider drop actual thermal detonators below then ride a thermal swiftly up to the sniper's nest firing a grapple as an arresting hook to keep from overshooting. The thermal detonators below rocked the cliff just as the two Mystral women reached the top of the cliff to begin running toward the attackers.

"Jedidiah INDEED! The man is a Jedi and this is his trap!" shouted Adrianna feeding a rage and hatred as she ran Force aided toward Kua Wan and Jahn.

The two adepts reached the snipers just as Kua Wan was trying to get information from them. Slave termination explosive charges rocked their bodies blowing out their necks and Jedidiah was firing a shouldered slug thrower at a distant, unseen target upland away from the cliffs. The snap hiss of Adrianna's red double bladed lightsaber caused him to calmly drop his weapon and draw his butterfly blades as his suit electrified. Her assault backed him up one step calmly parrying before he snapped his foot down causing the slug thrower to rise and even though she cut it in half instinctively both parts hit her on the chin, momentarily stunning her and giving him space to switch to his electrostaf.

" _KNOCK THIS KAK OFF BIG SIS! MOM SENT ME TO SAVE YOU!"_ rang inside Leo's head as a realization dawned on him and he interposed his lightsaber blocking her berserk swing.

"Drina calm down and listen!" Leo shouted as the Mystral kept running up and Kua Wan said "See? Told ya! Glue is for fools! Shouda just blown them up like you did for those in the sand!"

"Kua please take the two girls downrange the direction I was firing" and a solitary drone flew that way, "follow the drone I hope I hit him just right." Then "Jedidiah" looked at the wreckage of the slug thrower "That is now over sixty thousand credits you owe your poor wild space little brother big sis." He stated calmly while parrying her slowing attack.

"What did you say?" Adrianna asked her rage fading as her attacks were being blocked smoothly.

"The key phrase is life is immaterial." Jedidiah answered which stopped her attack.

"I have another half brother? As old and battered as she was?" She said in shock.

"She left you a holocron and you remember its lessons? Good! it is a start. We were born to quite the exceptional deceiver. But the Force had one last trick to play upon her redemption, you are looking at him, well somewhat that is. The suit is useful but confining in ways you could relate to eventually." Came the non mechanically aided words from "Jedidiah" in a soft tenor voice with care in it and steel behind it. "We have two hours to get off Serreno, follow the plan and live. Press your luck and I jump back over the cliff, glide to the family spaceport and leave you to your fate." He stated with finality.

"How what where?" She began an emotional confusion.

"Seek your training, calm yourself and follow." Jahn said retreating toward the dead prisoners.

Leo felt no push toward Force suggestion or coercion, something Adrianna's instructing him in the Force had always occurred. "All Force users dominate their surroundings and underlings. Those with weak minds can be led astray so we must protect them even if we must control them." She had said to him many times. His father, had often disagreed, stating that was the fundamental problem with the monolithic Empire.

Here was a person, strong in the Force, trained, but in control of himself letting others to themselves. A wink from Jahn made him realize "My thoughts betray me."


	9. Chapter 9

_**The Winds Shape**_

 _ **Chapter 19: Reveal the Sha**_

 _I own not those situations I borrow from Disney Properties, Lucas, Mechalich or Thomas Benjamin DeMayo. This is a dramatization from my mind on a character created from the meld of table gaming and so on. Special thanks to ideas Drew Karpyshyn and Tim Lebbon fermented. Special thanks to Morihei Ushiba who formed Petre with his wisdom. Like any mind construct this is an exercise and my own work building on other ideas from the past._

 _This is a Zeison Sha story, set in what is known as the Star Wars EU._

 **Serreno Bellasavian Cliffs**

 **2.8 BBA**

"We need to go so turn that damn thing off and put it away, we have much to learn." "Jedidiah" said to them with a phrik will.

When she complied he deactivated his staff, pulled off his gloves, they hung by material from his wrists revealing his hard working blue hands. "I know you have a ton of questions but… take my hand both of you… and he held out one hand as he reached for one of the assassins aiming to touch an exposed hand and gun.

Leo grabbed the thumb while Adrianna his fingers and _immediately was pulled into a surreal dream. The young man they held hands with was bright white, another by his side brilliant and old and the interplay of time falling backward as the slave was tasked to come to a bar in Carrania and a scene played out. The slave was summoned by the slave's owner's relative to come to this place with other slaves they sat at a table while a pair of females in black cloaks with electro whips waited and a Zabrak minion spoke. You nine are on the Bellasavian cove kill team. A group of joggers are going to pass there two days hence at this point on the map, slaughter them. You four are to reprogram the guardian's droids tomorrow night and her ship as well so the navicomputer is just a little off. We must kill Adrianna and Leo by sundown of the second day or you all and your families die…_

The vision ended and Jedidiah let go of them putting his gloves back on. "You have had four attempts on your life before you hired us and then, overruled Kua Wan and I when we told you this jog was a damn tough thing to cover. It is right hard to protect someone trying to die from privileged stubbornness or do you call it noblisse oblige? I would have tied you up and stopped the nonsense if not for this one lesson. Force adept or not, people like us die even with good training, and double fast if we act invincible. Those are Yanibar's rules, not mine."

"Who are you?" Leo asked and Jahn sighed before taking a deep breath, Leo could see a decision he had avoided so far had just been made in one cleansing breath. Jahn removed his goggles, then the contact lenses changing his eyes from Pantoran yellow to a brilliant green spiked hazel.

"I am the child of the Jedi who was hidden and escaped from the Empire's trap on Yanibar. Thus I am Zeison Sha and half brother to Adrianna. Anything else can wait as our compatriots return." He said putting the contacts back in "But they suspect I am Jedi blooded, here is the plan." And Jahn handed the sketch on the cloth napkin to the couple, only to watch them enter Force rapture without him to guide them out. A light touch of his returned them to the here and now. "Sorry, but your Sith earrings did the same to me earlier, which helped me pierce the shroud of the dark side and craft this vision." The looks of confusion as the two jet setters absorbed this was written all over their faces.

Kua Wan walked up while the two Mystrals carried a limp man, grumbling at their burden.

"He is out cold but may talk." Kua Wan commented.

"Awesome shot! Parted his hair just right!" Karolly enthusiastically added. Jahn brushed her hand and was assailed by another vision. He submitted to it before coming out and touching the captive. Jahn looked through the man as he touched him lightly "He will not talk willingly at first but" Jahn took out a tool and swiftly pulled a tooth before using another bit on the other end to reach inside his neck pulling out the explosive charge that the master could trigger to kill the slave before throwing the tool and device over the cliff side with a blast of Force rend causing an explosion "now he will be able to speak freely as this one" he brushed the man's hair out of his eyes "is an orphan. We can relate to that feeling eh Kua?"

If Kua had a reaction inside his armor no one could tell. Jahn watched Adrianna extend roughly her presence to affect him and when there was no purchase drew back confused.

 _They bear Dam-Powl's gift._ The adepts heard in his Padre's voice. _They cannot be manipulated by the arts of influence as it is part of their being._

"Employees to employer, next task? What are we doing? What is the plan?" Kua Wan asked as the three adepts had tuned out.

"Kua, this man is your charge, your apprentice, your responsibility to be released safely later." Leo responded rocking the Mandalorean suited man back on his heels. However, he did pick him up to carry.

"I get paid extra for this you know." Kua Wan responded.

"I believe we need to leave Serreno." Adrianna said with a sigh obviously still loving her life, celebrity and home world. "We leave now, did you find any sort of transport the assailants used to get here out there?"

"Do you think we would be so dumb as to carry a booby trapped slave if there was?" the Mystrals snarled as three drones were flying a search pattern over the windswept plateau.

Then Jahn pointed as they started circling an area. "Over there, a camouflaged speeder sled."

The looks he received as he started trotting that way from the other five were of disbelief.

"How are you doing this?" Karolly asked when she had caught up to Jahn.

"Psychometric interfaced Mecha Derro Force technique." Jahn said flatly back in his gravelly mechanical voice. "I interface with technology by touch, a latent talent of my bloodline that is an alchemical study. I have worked hard on improving as it is a non corruptive Sith discipline and dovetails into sanaah ya ubunifu, the art of creativity lost long ago in the Temple of Bodhi."

"You are a Sith?" the Mystral both said in shock.

"I am Zeison Sha, we adapt, overcome and survive in the light without prejudice for the safety and health of community." He answered to their shock "Those are Yanabar's rules, not mine."

"Yanibar's rules?" Leo Organa asked puzzled hearing it for the second time.

"Yanibar is harsh, it suffers not the wicked or the rigid dominant mind, you adapt to it symbiotically as a population or perish swiftly. Rule 5, Lesson of the Voorcat." His voice then changed into his tenor as his language changed to Yanab "Yan'eebar ai kei no vogel. Ashla an ti var do vida. Kia te kaha ki a koe." He said still trotting as one drone landed on the speeder while one hovered as a beacon and another gained altitude to search for threats.

"What does that mean?" Leo and Adrianna asked in unison.

"Use your insight initiates." Was his direct response "And tell yourself before you answer me." He said ominously "Your belief must infuse the choice of interpretation for it to have the power of that interpretation. Guessing?" his voice rose in pitch at the question "does NOT." He finished firmly.

"I know what it means." Kua Wan added menacingly "A bigger bounty from the Empire at the end." He paused as four heads turned to him "Provided you three up your value, right now you barely cover equipment expenses." At that he hopped and avoided a large vine that tripped the shocked celebrities and the mystrals tumbling them to the ground.

"Always be present even when ten seconds ahead!" Jahn barked "We have only 100 minutes left to leave Serreno safely." Jahn said in his mechanical voice loudly as he had not broken stride "Keep up! Yanibar's rules, not mine." As the four scrambled to their feet to jog and catch up grumbling about ganking Yanibar rules.


	10. Chapter 10

_**The Winds Shape**_

 _ **Chapter 20: False Trails**_

 _I own not those situations I borrow from Disney Properties, Lucas, Mechalich or Thomas Benjamin DeMayo. This is a dramatization from my mind on a character created from the meld of table gaming and so on. Special thanks to ideas Drew Karpyshyn and Tim Lebbon fermented. Special thanks to Morihei Ushiba who formed Petre with his wisdom. Like any mind construct this is an exercise and my own work building on other ideas from the past._

 _This is a Zeison Sha story, set in what is known as the Star Wars EU._

 **Serreno to Commenor**

 **2.8 BBA**

"We drive right to the ship but not too close," Adrianna said with steel in her voice, a yanab head wrap on for anonymity while chewing on a piece of gum Jahn had given her between breaths "Park and swiftly embark. When the fracas meant to kill us comes the speeder will be hit and explode while we are inside."

"After the secondary explosions and smoke grenades there pop." Leo also wearing a head scarf chewing on a gum said pointed to the case the assassins brought "We exit in the belly hatch to the service tunnel here."

"Two minutes later with Kua leading us up into my Phoenix Hawk." Jahn added while driving the skiff speeder listening to him chewing the gum he served himself ostensibly "to open ear canals should there be a close explosion."

"My yacht will lift off and make for space content in its fate." Adrianna said with regret.

"Then we meet fate head on." Jahn held up a memory cube "Preprogrammed hyperdrive calculations for a short hop while we make calculations to our next leg. Tis why my "landing here took so many hours in preparation. I needed an out, thus had to craft one."

"Which way?" Karolly asked.

"Pho Ph'eah of course, who would run toward Zygerria to escape gank?" He responded easily.

Jahn caught the Mystral's eye movements between their chews with the drone he had overhead and smiled inside. _Come closer, no, CLOSER, look hard, For the closer you are the less you see. Just aim at the target and not see._ As he pressed another pheromone pouch to release one that would interact with the gum he gave them and slow their thoughts ever so slightly while the opposite effect would happen to the chosen crew.

They avoided most traffic and patrols using the drones which while less common on Serreno, were still ubiquitous as the nobles of the land sent messages or made purchases using them and shell organizations. Some even used them as Jahn was at this second, simply for recon as they moved.

Jahn opened up a bit wider to the Force, in a way even Alon could detect, indeed the swirl when he released the matrix shield covered the city. Jahn who had been practicing this one place after place including on Denon steeled himself to insulate from the sheer multitude beyond count of "objects" in the Force. His greatest strength was his greatest weakness, a singularity that gave him overwhelming information. In the travels he had made over the recent past always such as now did he test himself before shutting down and leaving swiftly.

His swirl was not unnoticed in the universal Force as a woman sat in meditation inside her Star Destroyer. She ended her meditation abruptly and was about to begin changing course when her master summoned her via holocom.

"Lady Salah, it seems that singularity that was on Denon has moved." Emperor Dooku mentioned directly.

"I felt it too master." She said from her knees head bowed.

"For some reason it is on Serreno."

"I was about to change course to see if we could trap the vergence."

"I was unaware that anything we had on Serreno was worth investigating. My children seem more invested in self gratification than improvement."

"That is my thought as well master."

"Have I given you any orders, to suppress the tension and intrigue my children cause?"

"None my master."

"Then why have you invested capital which could be spent elsewhere?"

"You mean the Mystral lord?"

"Has it reached time for you to challenge me?"

"I still have more to learn master, and when all you have is mine, then I will end you."

Emperor Dooku smiled "That is the way of the Sith my apprentice, so the strong get stronger. Investigate not for an apprentice of your own as of yet. Politically you are weak."

"As you wish."

"Still, see if you can catch this being. It may turn out to be a great asset. One that brings your challenge to my feet judging by the volume."

"By your leave master, it shall be so."

"And remember, if given a choice choose your sister and not your brother. She provides an important distraction for the mob."

"Your will be done my master." And the connection terminated.

Salah felt a thrill not unlike when she killed, but greater. _And now my assention begins_ she hailed the bridge "Captain, plot a best speed course for Serreno." She commanded.

"Yes Ral Gorgon."

In Dooku's Palace, Alon Dooku paced awaiting word of his sister's demise when he felt the surge of Force from an unfettered Jahn.

"Security! Take me to the Port NOW! Adrianna is being kidnapped!" he yelled in panic. The loyal servitors jumped into action.

Jahn reached a point near the tarmac and instead of giving the guards time he merely reached out with his drones smashing the gate hinges so when the speeder sled reached it they just barreled on through.

"We could have…"

"Alerted Alon? Done! Slowed? We are behind our time and rhythm, unless you wish to manage a Star Destroyer?" Jahn shouted as they pelted on. He then activated his com to H8TR to lay down covering fire from the Dooku shuttle. Once down they began executing the plan as Kua Wan continued his barrages covering their entrance before scooting up the boarding ramp of the sleek space yacht.

"Oh my word!" Retched Karolly as she boarded the cadaver filled shuttle with wormy dead bodies of the fallen the day before rotting strapped in plush seats. Dunc heaved puke and even Leo blanched.

"Heat signatures in the correct shapes." Then Jahn pointed to the muts "and life signs strong enough to fool even the Force."

Adrianna smiled at the deviousness then noticed some items on a cadaver, her earrings, Leo's pendant Salah had given him on another as well. She turned in anger but Jahn was waiting and had his finger up in a negative move.

"Force signatures." And he placed his butterfly knives on one corpse. Then he waved them to the emergency hatch and shut down his swirl, confident in its echoes on his vibro blades would remain as the speeder outside exploded once twice and a third time.

"Down the Hatch! Called Kua Wan leading the six into the tunnels.

Alon arrived looking at his crew taking fire from Adrianna's shuttle lifting off as he pointed to his own "We have to intercept! Rally all spacecraft available! Stop that shuttle!" he commanded.

The six fugitives boarded a cramped Phoenix Hawk from the service tunnels and Jahn whipped out the "navigation coordinate" cube to be faced down by the two Mystrals with guns drawn as Kua secured the hatch.

"No offence." Said Karolly as she and Dunc slapped something piercing their necks before their eyes rolled back in their heads slumping to the ground.

"None taken." Jahn replied cheerfully turning to climb into the pilot's seat "Put those two in a single escape pod, we will space them as soon as we leave atmo."

"Do you need help flying? Little Brother?" Adrianna said as she worked.

"Just lay back on the cots and strap in, all is taken care of."

She and Leo lay down next to each other looking into their eyes with the rush of success. Then they glanced at the painting on the bulkhead above them of Jahn, his wife, his kids, his pregnant Asawa Ko, his father, her mother straddling a light to dark transition behind her as she did the same, her brother Alon, sister Ral Gorgon and father the Emperor even further in the darkness as the rapture reached them.

"Aww gank!" they exclaimed.

When they roused themselves out of the rapture they saw Kua Wan sitting on a large chest of her emergency funds she recognized. There was another, larger one near her.

"He told me before he left not to get greedy, but he did take his pay and what he said he invested plus the cost of the ship before he shot out in the second escape pod. There is one left." Kua Wan said. "This ship is headed down the Hydian toward Trielen, then Commenor where you get off Lady Dooku at Folor before Leo flies this to all the way back to Kashyyk to lay low. He said he already explained this and you were meditating on it."

"That son of a bitch! He…"

"He saved us.." Leo said softly. "And took a huge risk."

"Why did he not stay to train with us?" Adrianna protested.

"He is no master he said, fact is he got quite adamant at my use of the word after we avoided the Star Destroyer. He said "there are no masters in the Force, only adepts who realize it or not thus freeing or limiting themselves." He went on with some claptrap about satisfaction as an illusion and peace being the power within. Sounded too sappy but hey, he gave me a choice, awake or asleep, nothing else was changing." Kua Wan said adding "You shoot better awake" he told me."

"What possibly could there be for me on Commenor or Folor?"

"I think that is for you and you alone to find out love." Leo added obviously holding something back.

"Spill it…." Adrianna demanded.

"I think he is right and has guided us to choose how to train and continue." Leo Organa said dreamily "He showed me there is more family out there, and our training and teachers our own to find." He turned to Adrianna "I love you but we both need to change our paths, find and choose. While you have taught me much, the dream he showed me was vast and ended with a simple thought. Choice." He looked at the painting "May I keep it?"

Adrianna thought long and hard upon her life's lessons, masters and mentors to this point before nodding "I will get another copy in time should it be."

 _Thus ends Act 2 of "the Sha Chronicles: Book 1: Its Immaterial" Post comments if you desire._

 _Act one gives a picture of Yanab life sans the Twi'Lek settlements and the Fall of Sha Kalan._

 _Act two fleshes the political structure, doing more staging, fleshing family out more,_

 _Act three is decision time and the calm before the war … ends._

 _There may be more acts in the first book, after all this is space opera._


End file.
